Wasco County Commissioners met yesterday, and had some good news about a longterm grant. Commissioners Scott Hege and Steve Kramer had these responses.
“The grant is for 5.945 million dollars over a five-year period. It’s a lot of money. It’s pretty stunning, actually that we were able to get this grant. And the grant is going to help us implement our fire programs with all of our partners. There is a lot to do here but we have the team that can pull this off, and my confidence level was 110 percent that we’re going to have the best plan ever.”
Commissioners did approve the unusual decision to rescind an ordinance passed just last year. In this case it was the fee ordinance making annual adjustment to account for inflation. The reason for the change was that making fee adjustments by ordinance takes a long time to take effect, since it includes a 90-day mandatory waiting period. And since the adjustment is based on the Consumer Price Index at the time the ordinance passes, by the time it takes effect months later, the index may have changed a lot, and the new rates could be either above or below where they should be.
Fortunately, Oregon law also allows fee adjustments to also be made by resolution, which has no such waiting period, so the adjustment can actually reflect the index at the time it goes into effect.
The agenda also featured the first reading of a new animal ordinance for the county. Commissioners suggested one change before the ordinance is brought back to the county. The new ordinance would require any owner with four or more dogs to get a kennel license. That number will be changed to five dogs, and there will be exemptions for working dogs.